Bob Christoph Jr., left, in November 2014 at a press conference in Bridgeport, Conn. detailing the Steelpointe Harbor project underway by his Bridgeport Landing Development and RCI Group. RCI has disclosed $2 million in funding via the federal EB-5 program that allows qualified foreign investors for green cards in the United States if their projects produce at least 10 jobs. less

Bob Christoph Jr., left, in November 2014 at a press conference in Bridgeport, Conn. detailing the Steelpointe Harbor project underway by his Bridgeport Landing Development and RCI Group. RCI has disclosed $2 ... more

Business Council of Fairfield County CEO Chris Bruhl in July 2015 at the group's annual meeting in Stamford, Conn. In 2012 and 2013, Bruhl’s organization considered setting up an EB-5 regional center to draw direct foreign investment into the region. less

Business Council of Fairfield County CEO Chris Bruhl in July 2015 at the group's annual meeting in Stamford, Conn. In 2012 and 2013, Bruhl’s organization considered setting up an EB-5 regional center to draw ... more

Despite growth of green cards for rich expats, little investment seen in Fairfield County

1 / 4

Back to Gallery

When Congress extended funding for the federal government until December last week, supporters of a green card aimed at affluent foreign nationals gained extra time to make a case to keep the program, in which permanent residency is exchanged for investments that create jobs in the United States.

If the program, called EB-5, is alive in Fairfield County and Connecticut, it has yet to show much evidence of generating greenbacks for local projects.

Created in 1990 in an effort to lure foreign capital stateside, the EB-5 program is run by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, which issues green cards for investments of $500,000 or $1 million that create at least two jobs. To channel investments, USCIS authorizes regional centers that staff immigration attorneys to process paperwork and monitor the progress of investments.

According to a 2014 study by the Brookings Institution, an average of 4,150 foreign nationals received EB-5 visas annually between 2010 and 2012, while the following year the number of EB-5 regional centers nationally had nearly doubled to 400.

In February, USCIS approved the BLT TriState Regional Center at 100 Washington Blvd. in Stamford as a new EB-5 regional center, an office dubbed Two Harbor Point Square by owner Building and Land Technology. But BLT has yet to actively seek investments via the center, according to John Freeman, general counsel for BLT.

However, the RCI Group/Bridgeport Landing Development, led by Steelpointe Harbor developer Bob Christoph Jr., has created a limited liability company called Steelpointe EB-5 with $2 million in equity funding from an outside investor, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing from April. The goal is to grow that amount to $73 million, the filing says, presumably with foreign investment.

“The underlying purpose for it is to encourage foreign money to invest in our economy and to help U.S. businesses finance growth,” said Paul Edelberg, a partner in the Stamford office of Fox Rothschild specializing in international law. “That’s the positive of it — the negative is just the time delay it takes for the process to work. It can take a year or so to get the money in, and deals often need to get done in less time. You’re talking about raising money overseas and having a network to do that.”

Hoping to leverage its proximity to Wall Street, Connecticut has long worked to draw more foreign direct investment, and in 2012 the the Connecticut Senate passed a law to provide funding for direct investment in regional EB-5 centers here. It was passed despite opposition from the administration Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, who balked at the cost of running the program, saying existing mechanisms were sufficient to bring foreign investment to the state.

In testimony opposing the bill, the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development said it could not spare the $50,000 to $100,000 DECD estimated it would cost to run the center, including the services of an immigration attorney. At the time, DECD said it had received just one inquiry on setting up a regional EB-5 center in Connecticut, and that the state was adequately covered by centers in New York City. The bill came up short of a vote in the Connecticut House of Representatives.

In 2012 and 2013, the Business Council of Fairfield County considered leading the establishment of an EB-5 center in Stamford, where it is based. CEO Chris Bruhl told the Hartford Business Journal at the time that he envisioned drawing at least $3 million annually in foreign investment in the beginning, and up to as much as $35 million a year. A Business Council spokeswoman said it did not proceed with those plans, in part due to the cost of getting it up and running.

If the program has failed to generate much interest in Connecticut, it has underwritten big projects elsewhere, including in New York City, where foreign investors financed an 18-story office building on Fifth Avenue—now fully leased to tenants like Bank of America, Capital One and MasterCard. The EB-5 center that raised the money for that project was the Lubert-Adler Northeast Regional Center, with affiliate Lubert-Adler Real Estate Funds, a large source of backing for Stamford’s Harbor Point district under by Building and Land Technology.

Dec. 11 is the new deadline for Congress to reauthorize the EB-5 visa program — expect strenuous arguments on both sides of the issue.

“Why was it held up in Congress?” Edelberg said. “A lot had to do with a displaced distrust in foreign money.”